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youngjae had only looked away for five minutes to transfer the laundry from the washing machine to the dryer.
and now he didn’t know whether he should laugh, cry, or scream at the sight in front of him.
baby toys were strewn across the living room floor. the throw pillows that once perfectly lined the couch were now sporadically arranged on the floor, clearly formed for a game of the floor is lava. youngjae stared at the squeaky toy underneath his foot, the one that brought his attention to the catastrophe in front of him in the first place.
the culprit, their son, jaemin, had somehow climbed out of his playpen and now sat in the middle of the mess. youngjae found him flipping through the pages of his favorite picture book like the perfect little angel he was.
and jaemin really was their angel. he came at a time where he and junghwan weren’t actively trying for a baby. nonetheless, he was the perfect addition to their little family. youngjae could still remember the day he had anxiously waited for his alpha to come home to tell him the news, how junghwan had picked him up and spun him in circles in their living room because he couldn’t contain his excitement.
but some days, like today, jaemin really tested his patience. he had inherited the boundless energy of junghwan and was unable to stay still for even a few minutes. it probably didn’t help that they made their dearest friends, dohoon and jihoon, his godparents. he couldn’t count the amount of times they let their godson get away with things that youngjae and junghwan would never allow.
a squeal from the boy in front of him brought youngjae out of his thoughts, bringing his focus to jaemin, who had smiled up at his father without a trace of guilt at the mess he made. youngjae could only shake his head and let out a laugh as he walked towards jaemin to pick him up in his arms. youngjae snuggled his face into the small space between his son’s head and shoulder, breathing in the light baby powder scent. he felt the warmth spread against his entire chest, full of love for the baby boy in his arms.
youngjae raised his head to place their foreheads together, “let’s clean up your little mess before daddy comes home, hm?”
jaemin let out another squeal in response, to which youngjae let out a soft laugh in return.
after placing jaemin back in his playpen, youngjae had started to clean up around the room, making sure not to take his eyes off his son for too long this time.
it was the familiar jingle of keys that brought both youngjae and jaemin’s attention to the front door. youngjae quickly made his way to the entryway, eager to greet his husband.
“welcome home, love,” youngjae greeted junghwan, already reaching to help him with his things. but junghwan quickly dropped his belongings to pull youngjae by the waist before giving him a deep kiss. a kiss not full of want nor urgency, but a kiss that conveys the words ‘i miss you’ without saying a word.
pulling away, junghwan took this time to admire his omega. his eyes darted across youngjae’s different facial features. the flustered expression from his eyes, the sweet blush that spread across his cheeks, the light shine from his lips, and youngjae’s irresistible scent of milk and honey. it was moments like these that junghwan was reminded of just how lucky he was.
the sweet moment was broken by a strong wail coming from the living room. junghwan let out a low laugh, “he really is my son, isn’t he?” he said fondly as he guided the both of them through the entryway to the living room, his hand never leaving youngjae’s waist.
thus, their evening routine began. while youngjae took care of setting the table for dinner, junghwan took the opportunity to spend time with jaemin. they played and roughhoused with a bond that only father and son could share. even as they transferred to the dinner table, junghwan took over at feeding jaemin as always, making silly noises and facial expressions just so that their son would eat his vegetables.
this sight always pleased youngjae, he always wondered what nation he saved in his past life to deserve a life like this. to have a husband as devoted and loving as junghwan and to have a son as adorable and charming as jaemin. he could only look fondly at the pair, wishing he could keep this moment perfectly in his memory forever.
even when youngjae was finishing up with the dishes as junghwan took care of jaemin’s bath time in the bathroom, he could only laugh when here heard the soft scolding from junghwan whenever jaemin let out mischievous giggles as he splashed the bathwater out of the tub onto the floor (and onto junghwan’s shirt).
almost nothing could ruin the perfect little bubble that they were in as youngjae leaned against the doorframe to jaemin’s nursery as he watched junghwan cradle their son in his arms, humming a soft lullaby to put him to sleep.
keyword being almost. because even with the picture perfect moment in front of him, youngjae couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy in his chest. he knew that junghwan was jaemin’s favorite parent. and that’s fine, normal even. he knew that there will always be a special bond between them, but sometimes youngjae couldn’t help but compare. instead of inheriting youngjae’s calm personality, jaemin turned out to be a carbon copy of junghwan, in both looks and personality.
it didn’t help that most, if not all of the time, jaemin would only settle down with junghwan. he remembered all of the sleepless nights during the first few months of parenthood. youngjae had tried everything, jaemin was changed and fed, and had tried all of the tricks in the books to get him to go to sleep. but the moment that junghwan took jaemin in his arms, he had settled down almost instantly, falling asleep only a moment later.
youngjae knows he should feel grateful, and he really was, but he couldn’t help but think that sometimes he wasn’t doing enough. maybe he wasn’t playful enough, or maybe he was too strict, or too much of a clean freak. he tried to not let it get to him, but the guilt always crept up during the quiet moments, an unforgiving voice telling him that he’s not trying enough for his son, one of the people that he promised he’d give the world to.
youngjae had been so deep in his thoughts that he didn’t notice his husband now stood in front of him. youngjae looked over junghwan's shoulder to see jaemin already safely placed in his crib, fast asleep. junghwan had offered him a warm smile, before gently guiding youngjae down the hallway into their bedroom.
the two of them had settled in their nest, youngjae ready to retire for the night. but junghwan had known better, sensed better, that something was bothering his omega from the slight change in his scent.
“is something wrong, my love?” junghwan asked as he propped up with head with his hand, looking down onto youngjae’s curled up figure. junghwan reached out with his other hand to gently thread his fingers through youngjae’s hair, knowing that the act calmed the other down.
youngjae knew better than to say that it was nothing. one, junghwan was persistent, he knew that he wouldn’t stop his questioning until he was satisfied with the answer. two, he knew that he had to have this conversation with his alpha. it was one of their promises to each other long before they mated, that they would never keep secrets from each other, even the tiniest ones.
“sometimes i get jealous that you’re jaemin’s favorite,” youngjae admitted softly. he was slightly anxious at how his husband would respond, now thinking that what he just said was a bit silly.
there was a pause before junghwan replied, “so should we have another one? one for you and one for me?”
youngjae slapped at the alpha’s chest, “you know that’s not what i mean,” he slightly scolded, but couldn’t resist the giggle that escaped his mouth. this is one of the many things he loved about junghwan, he always knew what youngjae needed to hear, even it was something silly just to make him laugh.
junghwan smiled, happy that a small smile now replaced youngjae’s previous worried expression.
“i love how you are with kids, with jaemin most especially,” junghwan said as he shifted from his position to move on top of youngjae, lightly caging him in between his arms. this let him drop his head down to youngjae’s neck, beginning to scent him with his strawberry scent as he continued, “you take care of him so well, i truly don’t know what i’d do without you," he whispered with reverence, "you’re so nurturing but also fiercely protective. do you remember when you banned dohoon and jihoon from seeing him for a month because he had gotten a cold from their outing?”
youngjae lightly laughed, recalling the memory. it was petty, he admitted, but he couldn’t shake off the fear of it developing into something more serious.
“you never gave me a reason to worry about the two of you while i’m at work. the only problem is that i want to skip work so that i can quickly go home to the two of you,” junghwan said lowly, getting drowsy over their mixed scent of strawberry, milk and honey. youngjae was also feeling slightly intoxicated with the scent, his focus moving in and out.
he started to lap at youngjae’s scent glands and give his neck teasing nips, “you’re already so perfect with one, how much more with two? or three? or four?”
youngjae let out a whine, “baby, stop,” he said slightly breathless. youngjae couldn't help but let out little whimpers and whines as junghwan kept going at his neck before he was satisfied.
junghwan had finally pulled away to gaze at youngjae. he looked so perfect under the moonlight that peaked through the windows of their bedroom.
“jaemin has his playdate with your parents tomorrow, right?” junghwan had asked out of the blue.
youngjae was confused with his question. it had been a long standing tradition that both their parents got to spend every other weekend with their grandson. last week it had been junghwan’s parents’ turn, so of course this weekend jaemin was going to spent it with his parents. so why was he asking this all of a—
oh.
oh.
satisfied that youngjae got what he was implying, junghwan moved to lie down beside him and wrapped his arm around the other’s waist.
“let’s get to bed. we’ll need all the energy tomorrow,” junghwan finished with his voice heavy with sleep.